Everything WAS Going Well
by Ha-Yeah-I-Wish
Summary: Jeb and Dr. Martinez are getting married! Written as if Angel never happened.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I'm not James Patterson, nor do I own any of these characters**

Chapter 1

Finally, things were going right for me. Me, of all people. I didn't even know that was possible. Fang had come back, Angel hadn't tried to kick me out of the flock (yet), and Dylan and Fang hadn't ripped each other's throats out over me. Yet. Yeah, that's the list of things I worry about. Just the average day of a fifteen year old mutant freak. No biggie.

Today has been an absolutely fabulous day. I spent the entirety of it flying around the canyon with my flock. (More about them later) And, yes, I did say flying. Am I a junior pilot? No, I most certainly am not. I'm a human-avian hybrid. 98% percent human, 2% avian. And boy does that 2% have a big impact.

I have wings.

You read that right. Wings. I can fly and everything. Just so you know.

Anyway, my crazy life had finally slowed down and started to show signs of normality. Which meant something was seriously wrong.

I was coasting back to my home somewhere in Colorado. It's not that I don't know where, it's just that I'm not going to tell you. Get used to that. Anyway, we were landing on the roof when my Mom came out. I saw the look in her eyes and knew something was up. And in my life, "something" is never anything good.

Mom took my flock of six, plus me (which, by the way, is seven, people) and our two dogs (nine, if you're keeping track) into the living room where Jeb (10!) was already sitting. If you want his back history, read the series. I'm just not getting into that. Anyway, Mom sat down on the same couch as Jeb and we all sat scattered across the room. Jeb took a deep breath that automatically me on my guard. Despite the fact that my guard was already up because he was sitting in MY FREAKING LIVING ROOM!

"I think it's time for you kids to know," Jeb started, taking Mom's hand. Sign number two that things were majorly bad. "Dr. Martinez and I have decided to get married."

OH. MY. GOD!

I looked around at my flock to see how they were taking this. Fang, the next oldest member of the flock and my soul mate (*sigh*) was gazing at me and looking mildly surprised, which means he was about to keel over from shock.

Dylan, the newest member and my supposed other half, didn't seem to realize just how earth-shattering this news was. He looked mildly happy. I wanted to strangle him.

Iggy, the only other 15-year-old in the room, was so tense he looked as though he was about to explode like one of his bombs. You couldn't see anything in his eyes, mostly because he's blind, but his face was turned in Jeb and Mom's direction.

Nudge, my twelve year old ray of sunshine, didn't look like anything. She was absolutely frozen. Even her caramel colored curls seem immobile. I hoped she wasn't comatose.

The Gasman, Iggy's partner in crime, was absolutely horrified. He looked like he did that one time when he snuck downstairs to watch an R-rated horror movie with the boys. Yeah, it was that bad.

Angel, who used to be my baby, then kicked me out of the flock, was rather serene for someone who knew how horrendous this was. It was almost as though she knew it was coming. Of course! She must have read it in their minds beforehand. Yes, Angel can read minds. She can also control them and breathe underwater.

It was Gazzy who broke the silence with one of his, er, unfortunate occurrences. Mom and Jeb laughed, but no one else moved. I finally made my lips work to croak out the vital question

"How soon?"

**Ooh, cliffhanger! Leave comments if you think I should continue!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here's part two. And I'm still not James Patterson**

Chapter 2

Dinner that night was tense and quiet and really not worth mentioning. We all went to bed rather early for a group of people who usually stay up most of the night. Once everyone had fallen asleep except me (shocker, I know) I started thinking about the "big news". Jeb and Mom. Married. It's actually exactly what I wished for when I was younger, _before_ Jeb turned evil. I used to dream about my mom showing up and marrying Jeb. Now it's more like a nightmare. It's not that I have anything against marriage in general. Total and Akila's wedding was really… nice. Except for the fact that Fang left me (us) that night. That kinda sucked. Big time. But…

_Hello, Max. _

Oh, perfect. That's exactly what was missing. A Voice in my head to tick me off so I have no possible chance of going to sleep.

_Have you ever thought that maybe this situation is about more than just you?_

_What the heck?_ I screamed at it in my head. But of course I didn't get an answer. More than just me. More than _just _me? As in me and someone else? Me and Fang? Me and Dylan? Was my Voice now becoming a freaking match-maker?

_You need to consider your options._

Oh. My. God. The Voice was trying to set me up with Dylan. Again! _You know what, I'm going to sleep._

That night I dreamed that we moved to New Hampshire and I was getting married to Fang. Except after we got married Fang peeled off his face to show that he was really Dylan in a mask and Fang was locked up in a closet. Later I dreamed about Dylan Jr. and Max Jr. running around. It was horrible. I woke up screaming in my head and cursing off the Voice for doing that to me. I hope Angel wasn't listening. I was so not ready for this whole "wedding" thing.

Unfortunately, it was very much ready for me.

That morning my Mom gathered up me, Nudge, and Angel, and called her real daughter Ella up on the phone. She wanted to go shopping for bridesmaid dresses later today after Ella flew (like, on a plane) in. She wanted to know if we had any preferences. Bad move.

"How about pink because it really sets off my skin tone or maybe a light blue because that's the color Angel looks best in or purple cuz Teen Vogue says it's _so_ in this season or mmph mmph…" Nudge started, before I got my hand over her mouth. As much as I love that girl, she could turn any saint in heaven above into a lunatic.

"I like green, and plus Max looks really good in it." Ella said

"I think blue would be best cuz it looks good with white, and on me like Nudge said." Angel added.

"Max?" Mom asked.

"How about you go without me and just tell me what you pick." I said hopefully, but knowing that Mom would never ever give in because it _was_ her wedding.

"I'm sorry, Max, but that's just not possible." Mom mandated

"I thought not."


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own this. If I did, the story would be drastically different…**

Chapter 3

So Ella flies in, joyful and teary hellos all around, whatever. You know I don't like all that emotional crud. Anyway, we're at the dress… boutique? Store? How about place. We're at the dress _place _trying to figure out exactly what color we want. Everyone has a (different) opinion except me. I really don't care as long as it gets me out of there _fast_. And then who walks in the door? Brigid Dwyer, Fang's favorite underage scientist. Apparently, she's Mom's maid of honor, since she's Mom's closest unmarried friend. My day officially cannot get any worse unless Erasers come crashing through the freaking ceiling.

Mom stuffs me into three different dresses and I can only breathe in one of them. It's pink. I hate it. But, of course, they chose the most uncomfortable dress. It's baby blue, strapless (Grrrrr…), and looks like the kind of thing only Nudge would be caught wearing. _And I have to wear it in public. _My day, while still Eraser-less, now sucks a lot more.

Then Dr. Wonderful comes back to our house. I know Fang only loves me, but _she_ likes _him_, which is **so** much worse. I just hope she leaves soon.

Nope, she's staying for dinner. Fabulous.

She starts making eyes at Fang the second we walk in the door. Then she runs over and hugs him. Only him. Coincidence? I think not. More than anything else I want to pull Fang aside and remind him that he's mine. Just not verbally, if you know what I mean. But no, we have to stay and be "social." Guess what? I suck at "social". My "social" is not ripping off Brigid's head right now. I'll just daydream about it.

"Why don't we show everyone else the dresses?" I hear Nudge say, tearing me out of my daydream and back to reality.

"I think that's a great idea, Nudge!" pipes in Dr. Stupendous. Does anyone else notice how her eyes sparkle on Fang? No. Do I? Of course!

"How 'bout no." I suggest. My idea is immediately shot down as "silly". So I'm forced to heave myself off the couch and wrestle into the straight jacket everyone else calls a dress. Then, of course, we have to do a fashion show to show them off. _In front of Fang and Dylan._ I'm screwed. But Brigid Dwyer likes her dress and so will I. Or at least pretend that I do.

Angel enters. Everyone claps. Nudge enters. Everyone claps. I enter. Everyone is too stunned to clap. Dylan is looking at me in a way I have seen too often on Fang's face. It's too appreciative, too adoring for my liking. I'm just standing there on the "runway" (hallway) and Brigid the Beautiful comes out and bumps into me. I fall. She stays standing. Just my freaking luck. Everyone is laughing. All I need right now is the…

_You need to look on the bright side of things, Maximum. Maybe now is when everything __**falls**__ into place and that's why Brigid's here._

_I swear if this is another freaking test I'll…_ I thought, and then realized everyone was staring and wondering why I wasn't getting up. So I got up. I got up and stormed off to my room to change so I could fly away. The last thing I need right now is for everyone to see my underwear.

After Max stormed off everyone went still. Fang and Dylan looked at each other and said

"I'll go."

It would have been really funny if it weren't so serious. Fang looked at Dylan one more time and took off after Max.

After Fang left, Dylan did the same.

**If anyone is actually reading this story please review because otherwise I'll just stop updating**


	4. Chapter 4

**To xlabx7: I'm pretty much updating for you at this point. You're the only one who reviewed. So I wrote you a nice long chapter. Enjoy!**

Chapter 4

I had used my sonic speed to get me at least 100 miles away and then perched on the branch of a tree. I just sat there, crying and hugging the trunk for who knows how long. I was thinking about how the Voice decided to suddenly become a match-maker. Scratch that, THE match-maker. I hated how it didn't get that I didn't freaking care about Dylan. (I think) I hated how it persisted in saying that Fang was so wrong for me, despite the fact that he was so perfect. I hated how Dr. Stupendous kept popping up and making cow eyes ay MY Fang. Not to be all weird and jealous or anything. She just really pisses me off. I hated…

Suddenly there was a shadow over my head and who to my wondering eyes should swoop down? Dylan. Of freaking course.

"Max," he said, looking at me all tenderly with too perfect, warm, open eyes. I tried to pretend that my bird-kid heart didn't thrill more than little when he said my name. But I think he saw it in my eyes. Because he leaned in. To kiss _me_.

Inside I was freaking out. Do I punch him in the face? Do I let him kiss me just to see what it's like? Do I simply fly away?

And then his lips were on mine and there was nothing else but the magic in the air. But there was a small part of me realizing that we could never go back to the frosty-at-best relationship we had before. And Fang would be able to tell. And that would be the end. But most of me was thinking _Omigod this is amaaaaaaaaazing!_

Eventually we let go, staring at each other dreamily. Then I realized what was going on and I was out of there faster than you can say cheater.

I saw Fang's dark shape on the horizon and _thank god!_ He was flying towards me. He had missed the whole soap-opera-in-the-tree. I streaked toward him and he looked relieved to see me If only he knew.

Back at the house I was forced to sit through dinner, watching Brigid look romantically at Fang and feeling guilty. Then Dylan started looking at me when Fang wasn't looking and I think Fang saw once. I just couldn't take it anymore. My life was turning into one of those badly-written drama shows that you only watch because it's freakishly addictive. I looked at Fang and then at Dylan and made my decision.

After dinner we were all just hanging out. Brigid had left because, while she was staying in the nearest town, it was still an hour and a half away. Thank you O Sweet Lord. So I took Fang into my room. And we started talking. About EVERYTHING. It felt so good, lounging across his lap and just pouring out my soul. Eventually we started discussing Dylan. I wavered for a second, and then decided I would stick with my decision.

"About Dylan…" I started, kinda hoping he would change the topic.

"What?" he asked, looking all concerned and in love. My heart just melted and the whole story came tumbling out.

"When I ran away Dylan actually found me first in a tree and he kissed me and I didn't punch him or threaten him or anything but I was really just in shock and I only love you." I only lied a little bit at the end.

Fang was silent and still for a long time. You'd think there was nothing wrong, except for the look in his eyes.

I didn't know what was going to happen. He could run off again, he could start freaking out vocally, he could actually figure out how to make his face look like he feels. But no one would have predicted this.

He kind of slunk/stormed out of the room, as only Fang can when he's angry. I followed him out meekly. He stopped in front of Dylan.

"We need to get this over with. _Now_." Fang hissed. Dylan looked a little bit surprised, glanced at me, and then regained his composure.

"I knew it would come to this. How about out in the canyon?" he suggested casually, as though proposing an arm-wrestling match. I wish. Fang nodded gruffly and then headed out the door. Dylan was next, and then the rest of the flock trooped out. I stayed for a while, trying to convince myself I could just stay inside. I failed and ended up walking out the door feeling like I was going to a funeral. _My _funeral.

Outside the flock had cleared a roughly ring-shaped space that bordered on egg-like. Dylan and Fang were standing in what was supposed to be the center, but were definitely off to one side, staring each other down. Nudge had somehow gotten hold of one of those bells they have at the front desk of a hotel and was holding it at the ready. Angel looked up at me and said

"Okay, now we can start." Nudge rang the bell and Fang and Dylan stated circling each other, like they do in corny wrestling movies. Everyone in the flock started cheering indistinctly, obviously not sure who they wanted to win. I knew how they felt.

_Is this really what you want, Max?_

"No, of course it's not what I want! Do you really think I want the two guys I love to fight to the freaking _death_!" I hissed, unable to keep my thoughts in my head. Luckily, the cheering drowned me out and not even Iggy looked up. Below me the fight had actually started. Dylan swung hard at Fang's head, but he easily ducked it. While Dylan was amazing at fighting Erasers, we were less bulky and more adaptable, and thus harder to hit. I stopped looking when Fang actually landed a punch and started praying that someone, something would stop this.

_Only one person can stop it and you know that._

"Okay, fine." I grumbled. I leaped off the roof, flew a little, and landed in the real center of the egg.

"Yo, hold it! Stop right now!" I said. They didn't listen.

"Guys, cool it. I mean it." I tried. Nothing.

"If you don't stop right this second then I will throw myself off a freaking cliff with my wings tucked in and _then _where will you be!" I screeched. They stopped and everyone stared at me. It was silent. Then Nudge ran her bell to end the round. Everyone glanced at her, and then back to me. Dylan straightened and said

"Max, this has to happen, and now is as good a time as ever. It was going to come to this eventually, and it's not your fault, it's our fault. I mean…"

"No. It doesn't have to be this way. Max just has to make a choice." Angel piped up. She glanced at me apologetically and mouthed "I'm sorry." That was just too bad. She put this all on me and she was going to have to pay. But not right now.

"Who's it gonna be?" Fang asked, and I flashed back to the last time he said that. I had rescued Ari along with the rest of the flock from the School and it pissed him off. He made me choose. I chose Ari. Boy, did I regret that. He was begging me not to do the same thing.

"Yeah, who?" Dylan parroted, and I remembered that kiss. I remembered the way his mouth was so soft and warm on mine, the way he gazed into my eyes after. He was reminding me of that gaze right now.

"Ummmm, how about I give you an answer by…" I murmured, casting around in my head for a memorable date.

"How about by the wedding!" Nudge suggested. I nodded my consent and the boys looked dissatisfied. Well, boo-hoo for them. I mean, it's not like they were asking me to make **the most important freaking decision in my entire life **on a dime. It wasn't like _that_ at all.

We all trooped back inside feeling rather glum. And, yes, I did just say glum. I immediately walked over to the calendar and found the date for the wedding. It was 3 months away. I had only three months to choose between the two guys I loved. Welcome to my life. I was just glad robots hadn't come crashing through the ceiling. Yet. _Please no, please no, please no…_

_What a beautiful petition, Maximum._

"I could do without your sarcasm, thank you very much." I thought. "Any comments on who I should choose?" I asked, but, because it was my Voice, the answer couldn't just be _Fang_,_ Dylan_, or _No_.

_This one is up to you, Max. I encourage you to weigh the pros and cons of each option._

God, why didn't it just say "_what is the sound of one hand clapping?" _ And be done with it!

**Did you like it?**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm not James Patterson! Sorry…**

Chapter 5

The next morning I was dead tired because I had been up all night long trying to decide who I should choose and wondering what would happen to the one I didn't. So, of course, when Brigid arrived she just _had_ to comment.

"Was there a pea under your mattress last night, Princess Max?" she joked. I just barely refrained from snarling, _no, your ugly face kept me up_. Instead I smiled and nodded while everyone else laughed. Dylan and Fang were glancing at me anxiously, and I started to wonder how they would treat me while I decided. Would I be some sort of pariah, or become a lap dog? I guess I'd find out.

After breakfast, we gathered in the living room for a meeting about he wedding, which I was suddenly dreading a whole hell of a lot more.

"As you all know, we got our bridesmaid dresses yesterday.' Mom started, and everyone glanced covertly at me "And today we are going to pick out and mail our announcements. Which means you kids get a day off from the wedding!" Everyone cheered. I fake-cheered. What was I supposed to do with a whole day full of nothing? Now I was hoping robots came crashing through the ceiling. Well, not actually, because then we'd have to fix the ceiling, but you know what I meant.

An hour after Jeb and Mom and Brigid had split (yay!) Dylan came up to me and said

"Hey, Max. Do you want to go for a walk- uh, fly?"

It was only because he was so heart-meltingly adorable that I didn't roundhouse-kick him into next week, sometimes. But despite this I found myself stammering out

"Uh, sure?"

I was much more comfortable once we were airborne. For awhile we flew in silence, each wondering what the other was thinking.

"Do you know who you're going to choose?" Dylan asked awkwardly.

"No." I answered, hoping he would change the topic.

"I hope you choose me. I was created to be your other half. We would be so perfect together. Please, just choose _me_ Max." he said looking at me with those amazing turquoise eyes. I felt myself being drawn in, wanting to just say yes and be his forever. We could… Then Fang broke into my thoughts and reminded me why I was having difficulty making the choice. I remembered the first time I kissed him, when he was injured on the beach. I remembered him kissing someone else during our stint in Virginia, the rage that ignited in me.

"I'd like to, but I can't promise you that'll stay." I rationalized as we landed.

"Then I'll make it stay." He said, almost fiercely, except he was joking. I opened my mouth to respond but he cut me off. His lips were on mine for the second time in two days. I noticed this time they tasted like cinnamon. I couldn't get enough of it. This was so sweet, soft, beautiful. We broke apart, laughed, and headed back to the house. I was glad we landed far away, so Fang couldn't see us holding hands as we walked.

Fang was updating his blog when we got back to the house. He looked pretty impassive, but then, that's how his face always looks. Nudge pounced on me after we walked in the door, claiming that my Mom had called about the announcements and she just _had_ to talk to me. Yeah, right.

We flopped down on her bed (Note: there's no phone in her room) and Nudge just looked at me for a second. Then Ella walked in. apparently Nudge had gotten her up to date on thing whole thing.

"Sooooooooo…" started Ella.

"Who are you going to choose? Do you know who you're going to choose? Has either of them kissed you yet? If so, which one? Who kissed who first, you or them? How many times? Who…" Nudge asked in rapid-fire succession before I cut her off.

"Whoa, Nudge. Breathe." I interrupted. "I'll answer your questions. 1: I don't know. 2: Refer to last answer. 3: Yes. 4: Both of them. 5: I kissed Fang, Fang kissed me. Dylan kissed me. 6: Fang: too many times to keep track of. Dylan: two. Since yesterday."

"Wow" Ella breathed. "Which one do you think is cuter?"

"Dylan, definitely." I surprised myself by saying. "But Fang and I have more history." I added loyally.

"Who's a better kisser?" Nudge asked. I blushed.

"Ummmm… You're too young to know." I murmured

"Oh, please, Max. It's actually pretty funny how you think I've never kissed anyone aside from Gazzy, Iggy, and darling Fangie-poo."

"Whaaaat?" I screamed, shell-shocked. My little Nudge had actually kissed someone? Ella gasped and quickly turned on Nudge.

"Who was it, how old were you, and was it like making out or more of a peck on the cheek?" she interrogated

"Aaron Weber, eleven years old, the second one. When we were in Virginia." Nudge answered. "Okay, now it's your turn."

"Both of them?" I answered hopefully. They shook their heads.

"I'll spill if it'll make you feel more comfortable." Ella wheedled. I nodded. "Okay. I've kissed three guys: Eric Lummi, fifth grade. Henry Smith, 7th grade. Shaw Moore, 7th and 8th grade." They looked at me. I sighed.

"I give up! Fang is definitely a better kisser. Dylan is a lot hotter. I've liked Fang for too long to give up on him. But Dylan is _so_ romantic. My mind is going around in useless circles and I don't know what to do!" I admitted. Ella and Nudge, and Angel, who had entered the room when I raised my voice, were gaping. That was the most weakness I'd ever admitted to them. Ella walked over to me and put her hand on my arm.

"We'll help you, Max. I don't know how, but we'll do it." Everyone nodded.

"Hey, can I talk to Max?" Fang poked his head in the door and asked. I blushed automatically, and then nodded. I got up to walked out the door and glanced back. Nudge, Angel, and Ella were giving me thumbs-up(s?) I smiled and headed out.

After we took flight, Fang said

"I don't want to make this awkward, discussing the… previous events. I just want it to be like it used to be." I agreed with that all of the way. I told Fang so. He nodded, and we flew in companionable silence for a while. I found myself comparing this to the time I spent with Dylan. Dylan had pushed on about my decision, while Fang realized I didn't want to talk about it and let it go. It would be much easier to live with Fang, he knew me so much better. But with Dylan…

"You're brooding. Just let it go for a while. Pretend it never happened." Fang's voice cut into my thoughts. I smiled gratefully at him.

"In that case, I'm going to have to make fun of your hair." I smirked. It was starting to get really long, like past his shoulders. And it still had a little of the tan streaks from our funky New York makeover at the bottom. "You look like a hippie. I'm going to have to hunt down some rusty old kitchen shears and attack it before you go anywhere." He snorted

"I'm going to stop making you feel better if this is what I get." He warned jokingly.

"Ha! You're too dang sweet to stop. It's in your blood." I said sarcastically, luxuriating in the ease of the banter. We went back and forth without even thinking.

"You know it." Fang answered, more open then I had ever seen him before. Was he just trying to show me how simple it would be for us? The questions came back just when I thought they were gone. I motioned to Fang that we should land. He nodded and began the descent.

When we touched down he asked why we had landed.

"It keeps coming back. I wish I had someone that I could just tell everything to, a shoulder to cry on." I answered simply, and there was a short pause. When I looked up he was staring intently at me.

"You have me."

I walked over slowly and just kissed him. It was the first time _I _had ever kissed _him_. Like, _kissed him_ kissed him. It was glorious. At first he was surprised, then he relaxed in my arms. These kisses were the best we had ever shared. He was so serene that he just let go. I loved it, and him even more. My mind was made up irrevocably, until I saw Dylan again.

Fang was wrong. While I could tell him a lot, I couldn't tell him everything. He was too close to this problem to understand. I realized this whenever I pictured the look on his face as I would describe kissing Dylan. Not somewhere I wanted to go. I needed someone who was separate, but a part of it. It couldn't be Nudge, because she was too young and had some flock prejudices. It couldn't be Ella because, as much as I loved her, sometimes she just didn't get me. Angel had the same problems as Nudge. Then inspiration struck me. I realized I could tell my mom. I still wasn't used to having a mother figure in my life, so it took me a while to get to that. I swore I would tell her everything as soon as she got back.

After lots more smooching, Fang and I finally arrived home. Dylan was playing some shoot-'em-up video game with the Gasman. Apparently _banned for life_ is a lot shorter than it used to be.

Gazzy looked up guiltily as walked in, and I knew he knew he was in for it. But I could deal with that later. Because Dylan was looking at me too, and I was lost in his beautiful turquoise eyes. They were pools on a hot summer day, gorgeous and refreshing. They were… _Omigod I'm thinking in metaphors. That is never ever a good sign._

_I thought your craziness was supposed to lead to greatness. "Like Joan of Arc" were your words, I believe._ Said the Voice wryly. I moved to my room, where I could sit still and talk to the Voice in my head in private.

"The good news is I retained the words _metaphor_ and _retained_ from the two months or so I went to school" I hissed at it. Iggy glanced up as I walked past his room. He had what looked like the beginnings of a really big bomb laid out on the floor, but, being as he just heard me talking to my crazy-person Voice, I decided not to push it.


	6. Chapter 6

**Is anyone reading this? I know I already asked but I really feel like I'm writing for no one.**

Chapter 6

When I got to my room, all of the female flock members, plus Ella, were waiting for me. I sighed and joined them.

"While you were gone, we were thinking and we decided that making a pro/con list would be the best way to figure out your feelings." Nudge said, obviously the elected spokesperson. I sighed again. Sometimes I thought not asking for help was better.

"Okay, fine." I conceded. "Let's get this over with."

PRO- Dylan CON- Dylan

1. Has amazing 1. Asks too many questions

Eyes 2. Doesn't really know me

2. Gorgeous hair 3. Too perfect

3. Really good 4. A little too intense

Kisser 5. Hasn't been around long enough

4. Really sweet 6. Gifted w/Dr. G-H's magic spit

And open

5. Good

Fighter?

6. Can fly?

PRO- Fang CON- Fang

1. Has known 1. Too closed off

Me forever 2. Knows all of my flaws

2. My right-hand 3. Has hippie hair

Man 4. Ummmm…

3. Best kisser 5. There's nothing else bad

In the world about Fang

4. Too much history

To give up on

5. Looks great in

Black

6. Can play a mean

Harmonica

"Now we're getting somewhere." Said Nudge happily, reading over the lists. "Did you notice that Dylan has an even number of pros and cons, while Fang has more pros? I think this means you should choose Fang."

"Fang needs more cons? I can do that. He needles me constantly, despises Dylan, and solves everything with violence. There, now the pro/con lists are even." I answered back.

"The funny thing is that, until Dylan kissed you, you could have been describing yourself." Ella giggled. I gave her my patented if-you-don't-stop-laughing-right-now-I'm-going-to-kill-you glare. It worked, of course.

"Got any other ideas?" I asked, hating myself the whole time.

"Of course we do!" answered Angel

If my life was a movie then you would have just watched a cheesy montage of all of the methods, undeniably backed by annoyingly peppy music. Since this is a book, you're going to have to suffer through me telling you.

First they put up pictures of both of them. Then they had me close my eyes and walk forward. Whichever picture I was closer to was the one that I should choose. I'm not saying their methods are perfect, but I'll take what I can get. Anyhow, I somehow did a u-ie and walked straight into the door. I'm going to have a huge bruise tomorrow.

Method number two was me picking names out of a hat. They had the Gasman write them, so they wouldn't know which was which. I pulled one out and we all got kind of excited. I opened the paper and… couldn't read what it said because of Gazzy's suckish penmanship. Of course.

They figured "third time's the charm" and went on with option numero tres. For this one, they had me pick the petals off of a daisy. I started out loud, but it was kind of awkward, so I said them in my head. When I got to the last petal they all looked at me expectantly, and I realized that I had forgotten to keep track after a while. So that one was down the tubes.

You can just imagine the rest. After about three hours even Nudge's imagination was tuckered out. Plus, by then Mom was home. I raced into the kitchen, where I knew she would be, and found her smooching Jeb. Gag, much? I turned and ran away. I am now both grossed out and disappointed. I can't get the image of them kissing out of my head. Jeb looked like he was eating her face. Do Dylan and I look like that? Do _Fang_ and I look like that?

If my Voice could project images it would be showing me pictures of me kissing right now.

After an hour or two of just lazing around (because, honestly, I deserved some time to myself) I pried myself out of my room, quickly noting how quiet it was and going to investigate. As I was running all over the house, I happened to glance at the window and notice a giant knot of people clustered around it. I raced over to figure out what was going on

The knot of people was the flock and all wedding-related visitors. The reason they were all gathered together was a mystery. All I could figure was that something big and bad was happening. And _fast_.

I could tell by the mounting tension that someone was hurt, dead, or going to be. I paused for a second to pray that Dylan and Fang weren't fighting again, then plunged forward. You'd be surprised by how many people there were, for how antisocial we were.

When I reached the front, all I could ascertain were that there were a few not-so-still forms on the ground outside. My brain refused to absorb who they were. Brigid and Fang, on the ground next to each other. Entwined. And _something_ was happening.

And for all those weirdos out there who are thinking what I think you're thinking, no, EW, that's gross. They were making out. No more, no less. So don't even go there. Fang is _fifteen_, for crying out loud!

Anyway, I refused to accept that Fang was even sorta, kinda _with_ anyone else. It just didn't compute. Even with the proof right there in front of my face, I would not accept the cold, hard facts. I tried to convince myself that he had been dragged out here against his will. But, surrounding by this whispering, giggling group of people, I couldn't make it seem true. Fang. Was. Kissing. Someone. Else. I had to admit this before anything else happened, before they pounced on _me_.

But it wasn't possible. Amidst the crowd I saw my mom looking at me with worried eyes, and I just caved. I figured I had about half a second before I crumpled to the ground, sobbing. So I took off. As I always do.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

After a while (I couldn't tell you how long. I had been in some sort of lovelorn coma.) I picked myself up and flew back to the house. By then Fang was up as well. I couldn't even look at him, though he sought my gaze. I looked at Dylan instead, punishing Fang with each loving glance.

"Max, can we please just talk?" Fang pleaded. I brushed past him without a second thought. No, I was on at least my twenty-fifth thought by then.

I swept majestically into my room, where I collapsed rather un-majestically onto my bed. Then my mom came in. _Finally!_ I thought. She sat down on the bed and I poured out the whole story to her.

"… and now I don't know what to do! I want to give Fang a second chance, but I also want to make him suffer for a while." I finished, feeling as though a great weight had been lifted from my chest. No one knew the full extent of the story except me. It felt amazing to let someone else in.

"Hmmmm…" she pondered as I waited for her advice, "Maybe you should give him the silent treatment for a day or two, then hear what he has to say. But make sure you're not angry anymore before you talk to him." I nodded energetically, agreeing with her plan. We talked a while longer, and then she just held me for a long time. I loved having a mom.

I talked and flew with everyone except Fang for the next three days. By then my anger had cooled. I still felt hurt, but I wasn't angry. Well, I'm always angry at something, but I wasn't feeling _very_ angry. I counted it as good enough.

Fang looked up as I approached him, seeming surprised that I was doing so.

"You wanted to talk to me?" I said, a little bit stiffly. Maybe I wasn't as not angry as I had thought.

"Um, yeah." We ambled outside and plunk down on the edge of the canyon.

"I wanted to explain to you what happened that day. I didn't want you to think that I kissed you, turned around, and kissed someone else." I blushed, because that was exactly what I had done. "You kinda disappeared somewhere, and Brigid came over and asked if I would fly for her. I said yes, because I didn't have a good reason to say no. So we headed outside and go to…"

"We all know where you were.' I broke in, feeling my anger rise every time I heard _her_ name.

"No, we actually started out actually pretty close to here. Anyway, I flew for some time, then Brigid called me down. I didn't know what was going on, so I landed. She said she had to show me something over by where you guys found us. So she dragged me over there, then looked at me kinda funny. Then she kissed me. And that's it." He finished. I was speechless with joy, because it really was against his will.

"What are we going to tell everyone else?" I queried.

"We'll tell the flock the whole thing, but everyone else can think whatever they want." He answered

"Okay." I said, then we kissed, very much _not_ against his will.

So my dual-guy love life was back on track, sort of. Well, it was on the same track that it was on before. It doesn't really matter that that track was toward imminent doom, does it?

Anyway, we spun the story for the flock, including Dylan and my mom. Dylan had a look on his face that suggested that he just drank lemon juice the whole time. I was in MAX 3 FANG mode, so I found that pretty funny. The rest of the flock looked so relieved, which made me think they were on Team Fang. It'd make sense.

That night Total and Akila arrived home for the wedding. No one was really crying except Angel (a little bit), and Total got all huffy. Then he called us into the living room and announced that Akila was going to have a litter of puppies. We all said "Awwwwww…" and the boys made some suggestive and rather annoying noises, then we all went to bed. It was like midnight by that point in time, because Total had been considerate enough to book an eleven o' clock flight. I mean, _really_.

I dreamed that I turned into an Eraser, like I had in the past, and the entire flock ran away except Fang and Dylan. No answers there. Then Dylan tried to fight me and Fang tried to put me in a dog crate and the whole dream just went downhill from there. I'm not going to go into specifics, but it involved the flock stuffing me into a wooden box and mailing me to the School. Except they forgot to put in air holes, so I woke up feeling like I was about to suffocate.

Apparently Dylan heard me panting, so he crept into my room. I tried to tell myself that this was super-creepy and Fang was so much better for me. Then he spoke

"Max? We need to talk." Holy crudola. 'We need to talk' were the absolute last words I wanted to hear. That meant he was going to either a) ask me who I was going to choose b) bash Fang or c) tell me the good things about him. Or something else even worse. This would, of course, be worse.

"You know the story Fang told us about him and Brigid?" he said. I nodded, hoping this was a dream too. "Well he was lying. I was looking out the window and I saw him and Dr. B go out. He was flying around like he said and then he landed and kissed her. _He_ kissed _her_. Just thought you should know." He kissed me and left.

I was going to kill them both.

I've gotten some comments about this and let me just make it clear. This is not Mylan. I admit it might seem like that now, but it's not.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

_Omigod, Fang is so dead. Omigod, Fang is so dead. Omigod, Fang is so dead. _It was the only phrase circling through my head when I woke up the next morning. I was up at like 6:30, and decided he should be too. Unfortunately, he was, so I missed out on the pleasure of jumping on him to wake him up and "accidentally" kneeing him where it counts.

"Morning." He mumbled, making coffee already.

"I talked to Dylan last night and he said your story about you and Brigid was…" _Must not swear, must not swear, "_A load of hooey. Yes, I did just say hooey." He looked shocked, angry, and a little bit hurt.

"You think I would cheat on you?" he inquired softly. But I refused to be taken in.

"What about that red-haired girl, Lissa or whatever her name was, back in Virginia?" I spat. It was six am and I was already fuming. Today was shaping up to be great.

"That was before I knew. I would never cheat on you, Max. You're the only one that I've ever loved, and the only one I ever will. Unless you don't love me back. Then I'll just go my own way." He murmured his confession, voice pitched for only me. He seemed honestly hurt that I thought he would cheat on me. I started to not believe what Dylan had told me. Fang just looked so _innocent_.

"Of course I do." I said, just melting in his gaze. Then it turned impish.

"And let's not forget about good old Sam the Eraser, too." He laughed. We laughed.

"Did you talk to Fang?" Dylan inquired when we were out flying later in the day. It was just before I had to leave to go to a wedding-dress fitting with Mom.

"Ummmm… yes?" I answered.

"And what did he say?" Dylan prompted.

"Uh, he denied everything and, and…" I said trailing off, the rest of it just too intimate to share.

"And what?"

"And nothing. That's all."

"You have to believe me, Max! They were making out big time. Maybe he felt sorry afterwards, but that jerk loved it." He… exploded? Almost-but-not-quite exploded.

"Uh-huh? Prove it." I loved him and all, but I hate it when people try to shove information down my throat. The only thing that gets me more fired up is the word _no_.

"Talk to Brigid on your shopping trip. _She'll_ tell you the truth." He answered, almost smugly, like he couldn't be proven wrong.

"Don't you worry. I will" I sneered. God, his confidence was so _annoying_ sometimes!

We were in the car on the way to the wedding dress place (separate from the _dress_ place) I leaned over to Brigid and said

"What exactly happened that day between you and Fang?" And do you know what Dr. Wonderful did? She flushed the ugliest red you could possibly and started stuttering.

"Look, I'm not mad." She raised her eyebrows "Okay, yesterday I was so mad I could have happily ripped your face off. But I'm over it." Sort of.

"Okay then." Frigid (clever, I know.) breathed out looking relieved. "I took him outside to watch him fly and after a while he landed cuz he was feeling tired" _Liar. Unless they were out there for 8 hours. Which is a whole other problem. _I thought "We were just sitting there for a while, then we looked at each other and we both leaned in at the same time. I don't know what came over me. I mean, he's six years younger than me, and he has a girlfriend," Return of the tomato monster, "And I'm so sorry. But if you're looking for someone to blame then I guess it was both of us. And I'm really, _really_ sorry. Can you forgive me?" she was blushing and stuttering and half of me felt bad, half of me wanted to throttle Fang, and half of me wanted Fang to see his princess like _this_. By the way, I know that's three halves. I'm three dimensional, so why don't I get to have three halves? That, my friends, is flawed logic.

"Sure, whatever helps you get through the night." I muttered as we arrived at the wedding dress place. The dress we picked out was really pretty, for Mom. Not for me. Ever. Unless I was dead and Nudge was in charge of my funeral. Actually, even then I would come back to life and change into sweats. Anyway, we got home and I confronted Fang.

"I talked to Fr- Brigid and she told me the real story. I can't believe you would kiss her!" I told him.

"I didn't…" Fang started, but I was having none of that.

I fell for that last time, but this time there's no chance so don't even think about it, mister." I snapped "You kissed her and she kissed you. But it's the whole 'you kissed her' thing I'm worried about!"

"But, Max…"

"Zip it, bucko. God, with how mad I am I could go out and announce to the world that I choose Dylan!" I fumed.

"I'm trying to tell you that, while I will admit that I did kiss Brigid, I also was flying for seven hours, had a granola bar, and spent two hours out there with her. I was so wiped I couldn't tell you my _name_." Fang hissed

"Oh."

"Yeah, _oh_. You might want to think before you open your big mouth next time."

You have no idea how hard it was to restrain myself from ripping his limbs off right then.


End file.
